Calm Food Cravings Naturally with Visualization

by Stan Spencer (@DrStanSpencer)

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University conducted an experiment involving three groups of undergraduate students. Each group was told to imagine doing a task. The tasks to be imagined were as follows:

Group 1 – Insert 30 quarters into a laundry machine, and then eat 3 M&Ms.

Group 2 – Insert 3 quarters into a laundry machine, and then eat 30 M&Ms.

Group 3 – Insert 33 quarters into a laundry machine.

After completing their assigned visualizations, the participants were allowed to eat as much as they wanted from a bowl of real M&Ms. Those who had imagined eating 30 M&Ms ate an average of only 3 real M&Ms from the bowl, while participants from the other two groups ate an average of 5.

The researchers then conducted a follow-up experiment in which participants were asked to imagine either eating 3 or 30 M&Ms or transferring the same number of M&Ms from one bowl to another. The participants were then allowed to eat as many real M&Ms as they liked. Consistent with the first experiment, participants who had imagined eating 30 M&Ms subsequently ate fewer real M&Ms than those who had imagined eating only 3. Participants who imagined transferring 30 M&Ms from one bowl to another, however, subsequently ate more real M&Ms than those who had imagined moving only 3. While the M&M cravings of the first group were dampened, the cravings of the second group were intensified.

The study was published in the December 10 issue of Science. Time has an insightful review discussing this study in a broader context of food and drug addictions.

Relevance to Natural Weight Loss:

Weight Loss Tip: To calm a food craving naturally, imagine eating large amounts of the craved food. Continue your visualization for several minutes, or until you feel the craving subside.